columbia wrote:Is it ok question the defense now or is that still just reactionary yinzer talk?I need the experts from week one to tell me how it is.

The defense imo is the problem. Casey Hampton just isn't getting it done anymore and hasn't been for some time. Ziggy Hood 'ain't no Aaron.' The in-again-out-again duo of 92 and 56 is just bad. Timmons being misused to cover for the poor secondary is bad. Mr. Glass, I mean Troy, needs some spirit healers or something. Ike Taylor needs to be scratched. Every. Game. That's basically my beef with the D.

Our whole starting d-line sucks. Hood is a straight up bust. Hampton has nothing left at all. Kiesel is on the decline. Kiesel would be getting more heat if he didn't have a cool beard and or his linemates weren't so terrible.

I think this is a 5-11 team that has a QB that can almost by himself, pull us up to 9-7 or 8-8.

As long as Ben is healthy, we'll be competitive in most games. But without a running game or defense, it's very difficult to win in this league. And our defense is still good when everyone is healthy - which means they should be good in 1 or 2 games a season now.

jprolley wrote:It was actually Curtis painter for most of the colts game...who also carved up that vaunted steeler defense in the 4th quarter and had to be rescued by another last minute big Ben scoring drive.

even better.

we played against probably the sorriest collection of passing offenses in recorded history last year (i didn't even mention the 2 games against the great joe flacco). it's tiring to hear our 2011 stats as some sort of definitive proof that ike is a solid cornerback.

I would almost say this team could get by on pure offense, but we don't even give our QB the ability to will us to victory. I know the O-Line didn't give up many sacks (or any) last night, but the tackles' inability to block anyone off the edge forced Haley to run all of the draws and bubble screens.

Crap, this secondary gets to still face Flacco twice. This team can easily go 5-11 assuming they can even split against the Browns and Bengals and beat the Chiefs. I don't see any wins against any team that has a QB who isn't complete garbage at simply throwing a ball downfield.

DelPen wrote:Crap, this secondary gets to still face Flacco twice. This team can easily go 5-11 assuming they can even split against the Browns and Bengals and beat the Chiefs. I don't see any wins against any team that has a QB who isn't complete garbage at simply throwing a ball downfield.

This is extreme. This team could also go 9-7. They play really well at home. They beat a solid team in the Eagles.

The defense has always been predicated on (1) stopping the run, and (2) getting at least one big play (sack/turnover/run for loss) a drive. At that point, we could rush from 3rd and long and they wouldn't have time to beat the secondary. We just aren't getting the big play or routine pass pressure.

The Steelers are not good on either side of the line, or on Special Teams. That makes you a bad team every time, no matter how good your QB, TE, Receivers or Linebackers are.

On D, there is not single, consistently disruptive force anymore with the recent injuries to Harrison, Woodley or Polamalu either keeping them out of the lineup or limiting them when they play. Our D was always having everyone else just play OK and let them be the deciding factors. That ain't happening, and now we see how average everyone else is - including the overall scheme.

On offense, I just don't know. How many years can you go without ever being able to keep a healthy line, however average it may be? Our O-Line can't stay healthy.

Oh, and one more thing - our receivers are soft. I cannot stand watching Mike Wallace and Antonio Brown drop passes that hit them in the hands. ES makes almost every catch - but these guys are hurting us too. Every catch Wallace makes is a bobble at first.

Troy looks and has looked fat for the last few years. Perhaps he should rethink his training plan now that he is older. It seems that inner calm doesn't prevent puffy face and pulled muscles. Perhaps the weight room and some running?

The Snapshot wrote:The Steelers are not good on either side of the line, or on Special Teams. That makes you a bad team every time, no matter how good your QB, TE, Receivers or Linebackers are.

On D, there is not single, consistently disruptive force anymore with the recent injuries to Harrison, Woodley or Polamalu either keeping them out of the lineup or limiting them when they play. Our D was always having everyone else just play OK and let them be the deciding factors. That ain't happening, and now we see how average everyone else is - including the overall scheme.

On offense, I just don't know. How many years can you go without ever being able to keep a healthy line, however average it may be? Our O-Line can't stay healthy.

Oh, and one more thing - our receivers are soft. I cannot stand watching Mike Wallace and Antonio Brown drop passes that hit them in the hands. ES makes almost every catch - but these guys are hurting us too. Every catch Wallace makes is a bobble at first.

Troy looks and has looked fat for the last few years. Perhaps he should rethink his training plan now that he is older. It seems that inner calm doesn't prevent puffy face and pulled muscles. Perhaps the weight room and some running?

My feeling about this team is that they're very average without the defense playing at a high level. Not horrible, but not good either. I think the offense is capable of being great, but as you mentioned some of the WRs have mental issues, and the offensive line is a tire fire (again). Thank goodness for Heath.

At least the special teams aren't dragging the team down anymore? And it feels weird to say that after a game in which they had a punt blocked.